Judge likely to allow Amazon Appstore name

Apple's lawsuit will "probably" be denied says judge in US case

The US district judge overseeing Apple's lawsuit against Amazon, regarding the online retailer's use of the term Appstore, has said that she will "probably" deny the motion in favour of Amazon.

Judge Phyllis Hamilton suggested that Apple had been unable to demonstrate any confusion amongst customers, between the Apple App Store and Amazon's Appstore.

Apple originally accused Amazon of trademark infringement and unfair competition, with its lawsuit demanding they stop using the name and pay unspecified damages.

Sheridans lawyer Alex Chapman indicated at the time that it was up to Apple to assert its rights over the name and to prevent the term falling into common vocabulary. According to Judge Hamilton this is something they have so far failed to do.

"I'm troubled by the showing that you've made so far, but that's where you're likely not to prevail at this early juncture," said Hamilton of Apple, according to a Bloomberg report.

A final judgement in the case is yet to be made, but in the meantime Amazon continues to sell Android apps on its US site.

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